Experts say Trump’s global trade war makes a UK-US Brexit trade deal almost impossible. “[The US] believes the UK needs free trade deals and so is in a weak position. The US is maximising its leverage to exploit that weakness,” said Dr Tom Wright, director of the Center on the United States and Europe. Britain’s ability to forge a trade deal with the US is seen as a crucial test for Brexit, and for the country’s capacity to forge its future as an independent trading powerhouse. LONDON – The Trump administration will seek to exploit the UK’s weakness after Brexit, making a quick and beneficial trade deal almost impossible for Theresa May to achieve, according to leading US trade and foreign policy experts. “The Trump administration is pursuing a predatory policy towards Brexit,” Dr Tom Wright, director of the Center on the United States and Europe, a Washington-based policy group, told Business Insider. “It believes the UK needs free trade deals and so is in a weak position. The US is maximising its leverage to exploit that weakness. The timing for the UK is awful.” Britain’s ability to forge a trade deal with the US carries huge symbolic importance for Brexiteers, and is seen as a crucial test of its capacity to forge trade deals as an independent country after it leaves the EU. The timing for the UK is awful Prime Minister Theresa May has consistently touted the prospect of a swift free trade agreement once Britain leaves the… [Read full story]